ON THIS DAY
October 16, 2018
FROM THE DAILY MAIL ARCHIVE
OCTOBER 16, 1939 PENGUINS will only eat fish, and when their diet was difficult to obtain recently, the penguins at London Zoo looked like going hungry. However, substitutes were tried, and the ‘fish’ that met with the penguins’ approval were morsels of meat dipped in fish oil. OCTOBER 16, 1961 CHAIRMAN of the John Lewis chain store partnership, Mr Oswald Miller, wants to ban transistor radios in ‘public places’ in the group. In the in-house Gazette, he says: ‘I see no reason why the partnership should allow the amenities of its clubs or dining rooms to be spoilt for those who do not want popular music inflicted upon them.’
HAPPY BIRTHDAY
DAVINA McCALL, 51. The former host of Big Brother is an ex-girlfriend of rock star Eric Clapton. A fitness fanatic, she has had a series of best-selling fitness DVDs but says: ‘After three kids, my tummy looks like a Shar Pei puppy.’ McCall’s French mother was an alcoholic who left Davina with her paternal grandparents when she was a toddler and moved back to Paris. DAME ANGELA LANSBURY, 93. The London-born actress found fame in the U.S., in films such as The Manchurian Candidate and Bedknobs And Broomsticks. Dame Angela, who was nominated for an Oscar at just 19, holds the world record for playing the most prolific amateur sleuth. As Jessica Fletcher in TV’s Murder, She Wrote, she investigated crimes during 264 episodes and four TV films.
BORN ON THIS DAY
OSCAR WILDE (1854-1900). The Dublinborn playwright had no shame about his eccentricities, and reportedly once walked down the street with a lobster on a leash. The design of his grave in Paris was so controversial that someone vandalised it, breaking off the penis of the angel figure crafted by sculptor Jacob Epstein. It is believed that the cemetery superintendent later used it as a paperweight. MAX BYGRAVES (19222012). The all-round entertainer from London hosted Family Fortunes and starred in 19 Royal Variety Performances. Known for his catchphrases ‘I wanna tell you a story’ and ‘A good idea, son’, the former carpenter’s apprentice was also a shrewd businessman. He bought the rights to Lionel Bart’s musical Oliver! for just £350 and sold them on for £250,000.
ON OCTOBER 16…
IN 1958, the BBC broadcast the first episode of Blue Peter. The children’s series was intended to be a seven-week experiment.
IN 1978, Polish Cardinal Karol Wojtyla became John Paul II, the first non-Italian pontiff for more than 450 years.